Events

after a false start last fall, AONE is back in the autocrossing game this year! With the exception of the autocross and time trials at the national convention we hosted a few years ago, AONE has been pretty silent in the competitive event category for many years. Well, that is about to change!

What’s this? AONE Alfas whipping around autocross cones? Yep, that’s Brian Shorey, his daughter Cara, and Kevin Redden (top to bottom) getting some runs (and some kicks) in at the New England Jaguar club slalom event on May 6th to which we were invited. These Alfisti will all be at our autocross on June 17th!

On June 17th, rain or shine, we’ll be hosting an autocross, to be held in the parking lot of the Nashoba Valley Ski Area in Westford, MA. This initial event will be a way for us to get the cobwebs out (for participants and organizers alike!), so it will be rather informal but tons of fun nonetheless. Our goal is to get some experience so that we can start doing this on a regular basis, hopefully with another one or two events this year!

For those of you who have never autocrossed, it’s a great way to do some light competition in your Alfa (or other Lesser Car, as our Editor commonly refers to non-Alfas), with very low risk. What is an autocross? Basically, we use a bunch of cones and chalk to define a course in an open parking lot, making sure to avoid potential contact with curbs or other obstacles, and keeping the speeds limited to something that, while fun, are also safe. Then, cars run the course, one at a time (i.e. no collisions!), competing for the lowest elapsed time in their class. If you hit a cone, or go off course, then you are penalized (two seconds for each cone hit, and twenty seconds for an off-course).

This time out, the classes will be Stock 4-cyl, Stock 6-cyl, Modified 4-cyl, Modified 6-cyl, and Non-Alfa. (If you want to bring your 8-cyl Alfa, we’ll make a class for you!) Certificates will be awarded for first, second, and third place in each class, plus Fastest Time of Day (Alfa only). Depending on how many participants there are, there is usually time for at least a half dozen runs for each participant!

Your club will be procuring new cones to augment the ones remaining from our "old days" of autocrossing. (We’re even procuring new chalk.) We’re also in the process of securing some real high-tech timing equipment! We’re serious about this!

As these are lower-speed, controlled events, safety equipment is minimal. No roll cages or roll bars are required, even in open-top cars. For clothing, helmets are required, as are closed shoes and non-synthetic materials. We’ve already acquired several helmets in various sizes that now belong to the club, so everybody can arrive, pick up a helmet from the pile, and start dicing around the cones!

At 9:00am sharp, we’ll have an instruction and orientation session, followed by a walk-through of the course we’ve set up. We strongly urge you to show up before 9:00, even if you’re an experienced autocrosser! Timed runs will start at 9:30. We’ll break for lunch at noon, and do more timed runs from 12:30 till 3:00, followed by some fun runs afterward if we still have the energy.

The cost for AROC/AONE members will be $25 per driver ($30 per driver for non-members), which goes to offset the parking lot rental and required insurance costs. Be sure to check back here between now and the 17th for any changes and late-breaking news that might develop.

Note: We would like to get as many members as possible involved in this fun and exciting club project! If you would like to help, please join the AONE Autocross Discussion Forum now going on. Since this is also a learning event for the organizers, we would welcome any volunteers to help out planning and/or running the event (both this inaugural one and on into the future). Any prior experience in setting up an autocross, or an interest in learning about it, will be gratefully accepted. The organizers all plan on running our cars as well, so don’t think you won’t get your full share of runs if you help out!

We are also desperately looking for good, cost-effective autocross sites. If you have any leads, contact me at bshorey@cisco.com or post a message on the forum.

Autocrossing is a great way to hone your driving skills and improve your driving reflexes. Not only that, it’s truly fun, fun, fun! Even if you’ve never autocrossed or done anything like it, don’t be shy! [And don’t worry about turning in a slow time—mine will surely be slower.—Ed.] We’re also encouraging younger drivers to join us—what better way for a new driver to learn car control than in a controlled, safe environment. We’ll have some "classroom" instruction available for newer drivers (or anybody who would like it), and will also have some experienced drivers available for in-car instruction.

The Nashoba Valley Ski Area is located on Powers Road in Westford, MA, and is well-marked and very easy to find.

• Boston or Rt. 95/128: Take Rt. 2 West to Concord Circle, then West on Rt. 2A/119 about 6 miles to Powers Road (on your right)

• North of Boston: Take Rt. 495 South to Exit 32 (Westford), left off exit, first right on to Rt. 110 to Powers Road (1 mile on your left).

• North Shore: Take Rt. 128 South to Rt. 3 North to Rt. 495 South, Exit 32.

• South of Boston: Take Rt. 495 North to Exit 31 (Littleton Common), then East on Rt. 2A/119 about 2 miles to Powers Road (on your left).